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Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy A Good Start

Child and Youth Wellbeing Strategy A Good Start Say Plunket and The College of Midwives

Plunket and the College of Midwives are pleased the Government has so emphatically put the wellbeing of our children and whānau front and centre of its plans. Both are applauding the clear focus on family and whānau wellbeing, and specifically reducing inequity of outcomes for whanau.

Improving child wellbeing is fundamental to our nation’s future and we all have an obligation to level the playing field for our tamariki in New Zealand.

College Midwifery Advisor, Jacqui Anderson, says the College of Midwives has, for years, been raising issues relating to inequitable access to maternity health services, and they are pleased that the Government is finally taking midwives’ concerns seriously.

“Midwives are there at the very beginning of life and even before, during pregnancy,” she says.

“We are often there for more than one baby and for more than one woman in a family. We are the window into that family and what they need to achieve the best outcomes possible.”

Plunket work with whānau in their homes every day across Aotearoa and see first-hand that many tamariki are not able to get the best start in their first 1000 days of life - the most important time in their development.

“The strategy is a positive first step towards improving child wellbeing and reducing inequity for all tamariki in Aotearoa,” Plunket National Advisor Karen Magrath says. “But with all things, the strategy and actions need to be well resourced and connected.”

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Government and cross-sector action that puts children’s health and well-being first, has the potential to create generational change and make the difference of a lifetime.

Plunket and the College of Midwives look forward to engaging and consulting on the strategy as it is further developed.

“We know that many of New Zealand’s tamariki are currently not able to get the best start in life and if we hope to make our country the best place in the world for children, we need the Government to invest more in children; the framework announced yesterday is an encouraging first step,” Magrath says.

ENDS

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